allin

I accidentally voted no. Tablet error. I think this should be a rare accommodation. After all modern prosthetic devices are amazing. Most of the physical conditions which would justify it prevent top flight golf. There is after all a potential advantage, especially in difficult weather or on hilly courses. It kind of reinforces the idea that golfers aren't athletes as well.

Padrig Harrington. -3 Ernie Els -3 Lucas Glover -3 Obvious choices gone, I think Swartzchel has a good shot. I went with three veterans who have proved they can play US Open courses, have decent length and have at least some recent decent results.

Has a Dr. suggested what condition might be causing your pain? If it's a developing arthritic condition then some heat and an anti inflammatory before your warm up makes sense. Bulging disk, weak back or core muscles, even an overly soft bed or lack of hip flexibility can lead to back pain. It's muscle weakness or posture related sure golf might loosen you up. Whatever the cause there is probably a response you need to make, your body is warning you.

After catching a tree at the end of a drive I hit a blind SW From 85 yards over tall trees, with about 18 inches to spare to six feet and saved par.

I tape one finger because it splits. It is miss shaped due to being previously broken. Since this is not a blister, dry skin may be part of the problem.

Games can be played sitting down. Seriously if physical fitness is the primary factor then many Olympic events are questionable: Curling, archery, come to mind. Some people seek to denigrate certain sports to puff up their preferred sports. Good golf requires strength, flexibility, eye hand coordination, rhythm, creative thinking under the pressure of competition. My youthful competition as 400 / 800 meter runner required a different mix of skills and abilities, but to say one is a sport and the other is not borders on the ridiculous.

Eagles are more majestic than albatross's so I voted eagle. Now on to that world peace thing:-D!

The real issue is why should you trust this guys opinion. If you want to improve find a teaching source to evaluate your performance. You can assist by keeping some stats on your game gir, fairways, putts, sand saves etc. With an evaluation of where you are at set a goal for improvement that makes sense to you.

Press conferences aren't about journalism, they are about public relations and promoting the tournament. Most sportswriters recognize this and soft pedal their questions. After all if you ask a tough question then whoever sponsors the tournament and buys ads in newspapers and on TV will find a way to make your life miserable. Tiger unhappy, means no Tiger, sponsors unhappy, sportswriter possibly unemployed.

Many old time pros, had upright swings, especially women, they created distance with arc and rhythm. Their bad shots tended to be hooks. There is more emphasis on body rotation now. Since most amateurs naturally use their dominant side, emphasizing the left helped new golfers use their left side. Obviously both sides, both legs, arms, feet, hands work in concert. Like a lot of old saws it addresses an issue from a playing pros perspective, prevent the hook, get weight through the shot, and keeps new golfers from over using their dominant side. As more more fundamentally realistic description of how a golf good swing are created this type of trial and error instruction is dying. The possible exception is the pro tips included in golf magazines:-).

Golfers of my generation, over 55 still make a big deal about this, because pros are obsessive about this, and of course if they do it they know best ;-). I had a partner throw a fit because I walked across his line, maybe 25-30 feet from the hole on his 50 foot putt last year. Peltz did a study a few years ago and on soft greens there is a very slight influence , that last several hours. So there is as much chance a previous groups footsteps affecting your putt as your own group. Since the impressions accumulate extra care close to the cup is still warranted.

Mine was a fairly high content gold, probably a lot softer. Plus I gained weight, it didn't move at all:-P.

These posts comprise an excellent discussion about technique and swing elements. I have one observation. When I watch other golfers they often slice only on the driver or maximum fairway wood. For many people the biggest issue seems to be over use of the upper body or just to much effort to soon in the downswing. This destroys the golfers timing and leads to stiff arms and hands preventing proper club release. I see golfers practicing obsessed with the technical elements everyone has covered, becoming increasingly frustrated when improving their relaxation and rhythm needs to be addressed first. FWIW I was originally a bad hooker, now fade the ball, gradually returning to a draw to compensate for distance lost to age and injury.

I agree with your point, but most average golfers are average because they have never made a sustained effort at improving. I believe that in 2-3 years most golfers can get to 15-18 handicap by practicing 1-2 times per week and playing 18-27 holes per week 5-6 months a year. I wonder what percentage of golfers meet my criteria.?

I notice more variation in my day to day distances as I get older. Golf weather in my area isn't consistent until May. When I was younger after 7-10 days hitting balls I would know what my yardages were going to be for the season. Now it takes 4-6 weeks, and still varies more than it used to. I think it is hard to keep good rhythm and timing when your flexibility varies and a bit of fatigue sneaks in on hot days.

I hit a slight fade now. I voted mid draw, it gets pretty windy in Nebraska. I also see a lot more dogleg right than left holes it seems, or maybe since I fade the ball I just remember them since I have to challenge the trouble on the inside and fade off it.

Although no longer married I always wore my ring when married. I noticed the golf had distorted the rings shape, the golf club side became a bit flattened over time.

I have always worn a watch. I always had a cheap for golf only watch. I feel the sweat is hard on a good watches finish and the seals can be damaged by all the impacts, which hurts waterproofing protection. I currently wear an S1. I also carry a Bushnell, the best of both distance world's for me.

I think adding a 4w is great advice. 64 degree wedge until you hit a LW 75 yards doesn't make sense to me. I doubt you should be chipping with sand wedges at this point anyway? Are you actually turning all of your short shots around the green into pitches? If you are going to carry so many wedges have your irons bent so you have 15 yard gaps. Then you can choke down on the club to take 5 yards off, swing a bit easier to take 10 off. That way adding 5 yards by hitting harder is necessary less often, a plus for newer golfers.

Although they don't break my experience is they lose their stiffness quickly. Most aren't biodegradable also. I don't feel they are worth their cost premium.

It depends on the course but I usually carry 4 wedges. I drop the gap wedge for a strong 5w on a few longer courses. As a short hitter I almost never hit a 5w off the tee and 2 shot par 5s are a dream. If a course has a 185+ uphill par 3 the 5w is a better choice then trying to kill a 3h and I sub the 5w in. I turn a lot of doubles into bogey and bogeys into par with my LW . Often I hit it closer with a LW from 50 yards than chipping from 5 yards off the green so dropping the LW is not an option.

I find this thread interesting. I feel effort, use of the hands and upper body in the golf swing exceedingly difficult, especially with the driver. It is so easy to over do effort keys in golf. Take lag, I spent years failing to release the club properly in an attempt to create more lag. I now feel as if I start the downswing with my legs and a slight pull down with my left side and hand. From that point forward I try to allow my arms and hands to respond to what my turning body is doing. I am always searching for terms like speed, or turn quickly to replace words like hard or drive. It feels like I am casting, but results indicate differently. My low ball flight is higher and distance has increased. I guess my point is that the terminology to feel process is not the same for everyone. Applying my feel would lead to casting or flipping for others. Try to find a feel or term that reinforces and leads to an improved result even if it doesn't match textbook descriptions.

The post citing context has it right. You must know enough about your body type, swing type, before you can identify which tips may apply to you. Being exposed to new ways of thinking about golf swings or a specialty shot is worthwhile. Unfortunately I think newer golfers lacking a good base mix and match tips for different styles which is a killer. Any 18 handicap can spot flaws in others, good teaching pros have a toolbox which allows them to pick fixes which fit the ability level of a student without creating bigger problems. Blindly trying tips is inherently inefficient, you will probably improve but it will take far longer.

I get very frustrated by Internet posts that act as if there has been a million years biological evolution in the past 75 years. The truth is we will never know if players from the past would be as dominant today. Bobby Jones was about the same size as Rory, Nicklaus and BJ Holmes have similar builds. I am convinced that most past greats would still be great today, just like current golfers their skills would benefit from modern training, video, balls and clubs. Compare each their own era, rate their success against their peers. If anything you could make the case that given inferior equipment, tougher travel, less year round play, less well groomed courses that previous greats were more accomplished.

A pure straight shot is actually longest. Because golfers who fade the ball tend to come in a bit steeper, creating extra spin their shots tend to be a bit higher and roll a bit less. The human factor not the shot shape makes the difference. A power fade with a shallow angle of attack is practically indistinguishable from a draw. Pull fades, since contact quality is lessened are shorter.